Left rules out reconciliation with govt on Nuke issue

NEW DELHI: A day ahead of the crucial meeting of the joint mechanism on the Indo-US nuclear deal, the Left parties on Thursday ruled out any reconciliation with the government till it puts on hold the agreement and said its support should not be taken for granted.

On the eve of the meeting, the outside supporters also sent a note to the UPA on their concerns over the implications of Hyde Act on India's foreign and security policies.

Government had earlier sent its views on various points raised by the Left on the agenda items of the second round on September 19.

CPI General Secretary AB Bardhan said UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's statements in New York indicated that the government would go ahead with operationalising the deal and cautioned the UPA not to take its differences with the Left lightly. He warned that Left support should not be taken for granted.

"UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi has admitted the differences during her speech in New York but preferred to remain silent on how to resolve them," he said in Patna, adding that unless the government puts the deal on hold, there could not be any reconciliation.

As strong remarks emanated from the Left quarters, AICC General Secretary and Union Minister Prithviraj Chavan expressed hope that the issues would be resolved.

"We are trying our best to resolve the issues. We are trying to convince our Left friends," he said, but declined to hazard any guess whether any middle-ground would be found soon.

He said even the Left leaders were saying the nuclear issue was 'a matter which requires a long-haul'.

The latest Left note outlines the apprehensions regarding the implications of the Hyde Act on foreign and security policies.

On the foreign policy front, the note compiles the Left's points of view on issues like the government's stand on Iraq, Iran and the Palestine question on which they have been severely critical of the government.

Regarding security issues, the Left note is understood to contain the questions concerning joint military exercises with the US forces, the logistics agreement with the US and their views on how the government has responded on them.

Leaders of the four parties would hold informal consultations before proceeding for the meeting on Friday.

The notes exchanged between UPA and Left so far cover major issues like the impact of Hyde Act on the 123 agreement, fuel supply assurances, IAEA safeguards and full nuclear cooperation to the annual certification by US President.

Notwithstanding Left's scathing criticism, the UPA has asserted that the outside supporters should be 'confident' about government's ability to secure India's national interests.

On Left concerns over how the Hyde Act would affect implementation of 123 agreement by Washington, government in its response has said once the accord was approved by US Congress, only its provisions and not the US law would govern the rights and obligations of the contracting parties.

Government also claimed it had 'ensured' that it would not be placed in a situation similar to the one experienced by the Tarapur nuclear power plant when the US had stopped fuel supplies.